


Lessons learned the Hard Way

by lanondolce



Series: Clocked out (the BrightGears compendium) [2]
Category: SCP Foundation
Genre: A dash of one-sided Iceberg/Gears, But only if you squint, Discussion of Abortion, Don't worry this isn't mpreg, Light Angst, M/M, Other, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-01
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-12 17:33:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,708
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29139333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lanondolce/pseuds/lanondolce
Summary: Perhaps, it happened because it never really registered to Bright what being in a female body entailed, perhaps it happened because Bright is a dumbass with little to no sense of self-preservation. Most likely, it happened because of both.In other words, Bright accidentally gets pregnant.
Relationships: Jack Bright/Dr. Gears (SCP Foundation)
Series: Clocked out (the BrightGears compendium) [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2117451
Comments: 9
Kudos: 26





	Lessons learned the Hard Way

It never even occurred to him, af first. How could've it? He had been a man for the vast majority of his life, after all. And he rarely ever spent that long in a single body; he either had to give it back within a month, or it just died within that time frame. He never quite got accustomed to the concept of "womanhood", since being a woman also implied being human, and Bright could feel himself drifting further and further away from that as the days went on by. 

So it didn't occur to him, when he was bent over a trashcan, regurgitating all the contents of his stomach and then some. It didn't occur to him, when every now and then he was struck by the most sudden of urges: cravings for a large pizza with french fries and hot dogs as toppings. Cravings for a strawberry and banana smoothie, for a plate of tortellini with peas and a side dish of potatoes. He didn't dwell on the thought, and simply ordered some poor bastard to go fetch him his meal of choice, lest they face some unfortunate consequences.

It didn't even occur to him when his belly had swollen slightly. This body was fairly slim and lean-but Bright had been eating quite a number of calorie-laden food products in the past few weeks, so he merely blamed it on that. 

No, it never occured to him, as a matter of fact. The reality of the situation just happened to materialize out of thin air and slap him across the face.

"You're pregnant."

"…I beg your pardon?"

"It shows, here, look-" the female researcher, a stoic looking woman in her late forties, handed the clipboard over to him. Bright's eyes scanned the contents of the page: something something hemoglobin levels, something something white and red blood cells, something something something-

"…I don't see how any of this means-"

"Here-" the woman tapped her pen on one of the text boxes "-where it mentions your hCG levels. In the average woman, it should not exceed 5 mIU/mL, but yours is over 30-" she brought the pen to her lips in consideration "-which means there's an extremely high chance you're pregnant. Of course, we're going to have you run a few more tests. On that note-do you have any idea when this may have happened?"

Bright was still too stunned to answer.

It was as if his brain had come to a screeching halt, and the engines and machinations inside were fuming. His ears were ringing and nothing registered except for the other's blank expression.

"I…don't know…" at first, his answer had been truthful, before turning into a lie halfway through: he knew exactly when it could've happened. More or less, since as of late-

Every single one of his escapades with Gears suddenly flashed before his eyes, one after the other, fleeting images followed by phantom touches that grazed his body.

It happened a long while back, a few months or so ago, when Bright had hunkered down under Gears' desk in his office, and against all odds, somehow got the older man to…relax under his ministrations.  
Their flings had continued, because Bright was a greedy person who wanted more and more. So both he and his "partner" tumbled further and further down the slippery slope, the one with around fifteen warning signs Bright had elected to ignore. He ended up dragging the other along for the ride: desire gave way to a stronger desire, and the two found themselves constantly seeking out those moments of carnal pleasure. Wether it boiled down to the sex itself, or wether there was something deeper to their stiff embraces, neither could tell.

' _Pregnant. Pregnant. I'm pregnant. There's-'_

' _There's something inside me. Someone inside me. A something that will become a someone-'_

When the realization fully dawned upon him, it knocked all the air out of his lungs. Bright clutched his stomach: the bump, that bump he had felt but had dismissed as fat, that bump was…it…

"No."

"Pardon?"

"I, I can't-" 

"Dr. Bright, you look a bit pale. I reccomend you sit down-" Bright let himself fall on a nearby chair. His limbs felt as heavy as lead, arms hanging limply by his sides.

"…Anyways, I've already informed your superiors."

"-You-!" 

"I'm not sure what measures will be taken, but you will most likely be put under surveillance. 05-2 was reported to have shown a great deal of interest in your situation. By the way, you're going to have to fill out a few forms, so if you-"

The woman droned on and on but Bright was no longer listening. Her monotone voice had turned into white noise as a crushing weight settled in his gut.

' _Ah, fuck me. Fuck it all, actually_ '.

* * *

  
Knock knock.

"Gears?" His voice was tired. He was pretty sure the last half hour had taken a couple decades off his lifespan. Well, this body's lifespan, anyways.

The face that peeked out from behind the door was not the one of the older, middle-aged man he had been expecting, but instead that of his spectacled asisstant's. 

"…Oh. It's you. What do you want." Iceberg didn't attempt to conceal the disdain in his voice. More often than not, whenever Bright showed up, it only meant he was up to no good.   
Bright couldn't exactly blame him-by now, the younger had walked in on a fair amount of…obscene sights, due to his disregard for etiquette when it came to his encounters with Gears. 

His stomach lurched again.

"I…need to talk with your boss. It's urgent."

"You need to talk or you need to _talk_?" 

"Listen, kid, it's-it's serious, alright? I need to talk to him ASAP. I don't care what the hell he's doing, if he's caught in the middle of a Keter class containment breach, if he's laying on a hospital bed somewhere about to exhale his last breath- _I need to talk to him_." 

Iceberg scanned him, blue eyes flickering for a few seconds.

"…He's busy at the moment."

" _Did you not hear me_ -?!"

"Excuse me-" right at that awfully convenient moment, Iceberg's phone rang. He picked it up, and turned his back to the other researcher.  
Bright huffed, blowing a stray lock of hair away from his face. He must've looked like a mess. The long blonde hair of the woman he was inhabiting-which he usually only tied into a ponytail before calling it a day-looked like a hornet's nest that had been stepped on. He doubted the rest of him was in better shape. 

"I see…uh…no, he's not-please, wait a moment, sir-" Iceberg fished a notebook out of his pocket, as he sandwiched the phone between his cheek and shoulder, and looked for something to write with. 

Bright was growing increasingly exasperated.

He leaned on the doorframe, and opened his mouth-but before he could even say anything, Iceberg met his gaze. 'Wait' was the single word he mouthed as he scribbled something down, still conversing with the unknown person on the other end of the line.

Jackass. Maybe if he were in his position-

The seconds ticked on by, agonizingly slow, far too slow for Bright's liking. Finally, _f_ _inally_ , the younger hung up, and set his phone down.

"You're still here?"

"I'm sorry, what part of 'it's urgent' did you not understand? Do I need to beat it into that thick, frozen head of yours-" 

"Now, calm down, Dr. Bright. You know stress is bad for the baby."

Bright's eyes widened. His mouth hung ajar, and for a moment, he was too stunned to speak.

But this time, he snapped out of it quickly.

"You _k_ _now_?!"

"The whole site knows, actually. I think you're the only one that didn't. Not to mention, you haven't exactly been…discreet, this whole time. And hey, while I don't know if you're fucking every other researcher in this establishment as well, the fact that you ran all the way here the second you found out is telling."

"…Who do you take me for, exactly?"

Iceberg shrugged. He moved past Bright without saying a word, and didn't look back at him.

"Gears should be back tomorrow. I'm sure he'll know by then, if he doesn't already."

Iceberg's footsteps followed him down the harshly lit hallway, until they disappeared completely.

Bright was left standing there. His ears were ringing again. The bile in his throat churned. 

Deep breaths in, deep breaths out. That was all he could do to stop himself from punching a wall.

* * *

  
" _No_."

Bright's voice was firm.

But so was Gears' gaze. Though the bags under his eyes were a deeper shade of purple and gray than usual, his expression betrayed no hint of emotion.

That impassive face, which up until a while ago, Bright had found a fascinating challenge, was now making his skin prickle with rage. 

Damnit. The man was flesh and blood like the rest of them. He knew it for a fact. He had grabbed those little slivers of humanity he always kept under lock and key and shoved them in his face. And in true 'gotcha!' fashion, forced Gears to come to terms with the truth, with his own idiocy.

But maybe Bright had been the dumbass all along. No, scratch that, he definitely had been. 

"…That wasn't a proposal, Bright, it was on order. On behalf of O5-"

Bright slammed both hands on the desk.

" _I SAID NO_! What, so they can, can keep it in a cell, locked up for the rest of its life-"

"I assume that's their intent, yes."

Red was bleeding in the corners of Bright's eyesight. He gulped, inhaling a shaky breath.

"No. I'm not going to let this happen. I'm not doing what that _piece of shit_ did, I'm not letting my…kid live, grow and die in this fucking hellhole."

"You want to perform an abortion, then?"

" _Of course I do_! If it could, it would thank me." 

"…I understand the cause of your concern, but know the O5 council won't let you. They've said that, considering the…curious nature of your family tree, and SCP-963's properties, they want to find out what will happen. Wether or not the presence of SCP-963 will influence the child's development in any way, resulting in an anomaly, or if it will grow into a regular human being."

" _I'm not letting this happen_."

"You don't have a choice." 

Bright grabbed Gears by the collar of his dress shirt, pinning him against a wall. In this body, he was a head shorter than the man, and far outmatched in terms of physical strength, but the fury pumping through his veins like fire proved an adequate substitute for muscle mass. 

" _God fucking damnit,_ Gears, this is your kid too. You've had a kid, no? You're a father. Are you really okay with this? _Are you_? Are you okay with your child being treated like a lab rat since the day of their birth? Are you okay with them not even being given a name, just being called by a fucking number-"

"That's not a certainty, Bright. There's a chance the child won't be anomalous."

"AND WHAT THEN?! If it turns out to be a normal kid-what the fuck would it do then! It's whole life has been screwed over, and it hasn't even been born yet-! Besides, I know what this damn place is like. It haunts you like a shadow, it never lets go once it sinks its teeth in you-and someone born here, someone with a father like you, like _me_ …no. If it's not the Foundation, someone else will get their hands on them, something else will happen-damnit, I-!"

Gears stared. Unblinking. There was a flash of something in his eyes-of what, Bright couldn't tell. Maybe it was anger. Maybe it was frustration. Maybe it was regret.

Maybe it was the flickering of the ceiling lights.

Bright screamed. The sound scratched his throat, it reverberated in his skull, as he aimed a fist for the other's face-

And it was caught by a larger hand.   
Bright struggled, he grit his teeth, but he couldn't budge an inch. He was shaking with fury.

"You're overreacting, Dr. Bright."

"And you're _unde_ rreacting! You really don't give a shit, do you! You're like their perfect little fucking sock puppet, like their _pet dog_."

Bright tried pulling his hand away. After a few seconds of struggling, Gears let go.   
Bright could feel something wet welling in his eyes. Tears. It had been a long, long while since he had last cried. The warm liquid felt foreign as it spilled down cheeks. He had to blink a few times to see properly.

God. He hadn't slept at all, every single second had been hell ever since he got those test results back. Fuck Foundation protocols and general screenings. Fuck the Foundation.

"…Bright, you're a site director. You're someone of a certain importance-your clearance level is proof of that. You've been here for a long time, and will certainly be here longer than I will. Do you mean to tell me, you have yet to understand how the Foundation works?"

Bright clenched his fist. He could feel a few tears stain his shirt. The filthy, dirty shirt he hadn't changed out of since yesterday.

He knew. 

"…I'm aware…" Gears began "…that you have experienced a number of…traumatic, incidents, involving your family, due to your involvement with the Foundation. Which is most likely why you're reacting the way you are. However-"

"Do you care?"

Bright's voice was barely above a whisper. The adrenaline that had been pumping through his veins was starting to dissipate, and an exhaustion was taking its place. A heavy, empty exhaustion that slowly crushed him.

Gears didn't answer. He merely stared at Bright. If there was something going on in that head of his, be it a thought or an emotion, it was privy only to himself and to God. 

"Please…just, answer me this. Do you give a shit. At all. About the kid…about…me?" 

Gears opened his mouth, but Bright interrupted him before he could begin speaking.

"I mean, right, who the fuck am I kidding, this is just a friends-with-benifits thing gone wrong, but, hell-even that, _friends_. Is there a smidgen of compassion, of empathy, of _anything_ in that chest of yours? Or is it empty? Is it stuffed to the brim with cogs instead? I forced that damn vault of yours opened and looked inside, and even then, _is there anything_ -?!"

Gears said nothing. 

Bright inhaled sharply. He thought he had blinked away all the tears, and yet it appeared the salty reservoirs in his eyes were far from empty. More and more poured down his face, each droplet silent and solemn.

"There is. There is and you don't do anything about it. _Why_?"

His mouth didn't move. His eyebrows twitched-though faintly.

" _WHY_?!"

Nothing. 

If Bright had any more energy in him left, he might've screamed at him again. He might've even tried throwing something at him, since more direct physical assault clearly didn't prove effective; but he knew a lost cause when he saw one.

He should've made this one out a little sooner, though, before making a fool out of himself.

He took a step backwards.

"You're way more of a fucking freak than anyone in this place."

Wether or not Gears had something to say to this, he would never know, because Bright stormed out of the office, knocking down a stack of papers in his haste.

The pages fluttered in the air, flapping as they descended towards the ground. The sliding of mechanical doors could be heard, accompanied by the stomp of flat heels against marble tiles. They grew fainter and fainter, until Gears could no longer make them out.

He stood there, motionless. A few papers landed near him, one even rested on his foot.   
The room looked as if a tornado had passed by-that certainly was what it felt like. 

The question kept ringing in his ears. Over and over and over.

Why?

…Funnily enough, that was the same question Gears had been asking himself this whole time.

**Author's Note:**

> What the hell is this? Some of you may feel inclined to ask after reading this (understandably)
> 
> This is what my hellbrain cooked up at 2 am while listening to britney spears. Tho I've had the idea for a while (what if Bright got pregnant?)but I only now decided to flesh it out.  
> I think it's fair to say, the Foundation would be rather controlling of its personnel, if they deem a situation "worthwhile"
> 
> There's a part that takes place between this fic and the first one in the series, but actually writing and publishing your works in the chronological order they take place in is for pussies. And mentally stable people (hopefully I can get to it eventually tho!! And uh. Also expand on this hell of a loose plot thread)
> 
> Anywho, ty to those who actually decided to read this mess 'till the end!!


End file.
